I just started watching Breaking Bad on Netflix in the past few months. I started primarily because it is filmed in Albuquerque and elsewhere in New Mexico. I’ve loved the vistas and the sky more than any of the other details I’ve recognized, and I’ve wondered if someone who has never been here is as delighted with the beauty as we who live here are.

I almost stopped watching because the occasional violence is very strong. People die. Few are shot, too many are beaten to death. There is too much screaming and mad-dogging. It can be hard to watch. That’s the asterisk on this 5-star rating.

That said, I am more often stunned by the writing and the acting. I can’t do either justice. Some scenes are heart-wrenching and one can read thoughts on faces to a degree I can’t remember from another TV show. The two principals, Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul, are phenomenal; both have shown such depth. Almost everyone around them is great. Even the characters I hate.

Although making and dealing methamphetamines drive the plot, this show in no way glamorizes drugs. The desperate skeletal junkies should scare anyone away from meth (or heroin).

My comments come at the end of Season 2. The first season had only 7 episodes; Season 2 has 13. Twenty episodes aren’t very many. I’ve heard things get weirder or worse (very hard to imagine) in Season 4 (not yet on Netflix). Can good writing and acting compel one to watch the unwatchable? I’ll let you know.

Whoa. Samuel L. Jackson is fantastic in this movie, as a mentally deranged man on a mission. The movie takes us into his mind repeatedly, and very effectively. Quite interesting. (And a suitable follow-up to the sublime Ink.) Don’t read the IMDB synopsis or any other. (Not a Valentine’s movie.)

Great performances along side Jackson, especially Aunjanue Ellis, Tamara Tunie, Ann Magnuson, and Anthony Michael Hall.

Holy crap! What an original, stunning vision. If you have some patience and don’t mind uncertainty, this movie is amazing. Don’t read any synopses – take a chance. The movie streams on Netflix and IMDB (106 minutes).

Though quite original, Ink made me think of several movies, including Dark City, 9, Beauty and the Beast, Newt from Aliens, and Franklyn. (Yes, weird to call a move original and then cite other movies, but, seriously, Ink is fresh.) And Jade Warrior, which Ink resembles only in blowing my mind. In particular, a short film I caught on PBS, Spin, came to mind. Damn if it wasn’t the same writer/director, Jamin Winans (see the 8 minute short).

We watched A Knight’s Tale on DVD a second time. While set in the Middle Ages, the language, *most* of the behavior, and the soundtrack were all modern. It was quite entertaining, though it could have been a half hour shorter. Heath Ledger stars but the entire ensemble is great. Paul Bettany is fabulous as Chaucer. (Bettany played my favorite character in A Beautiful Mind.) Kudos to Alan Tudyk as Wat. (Tudyk was fabulous as Wash in Firefly, my favorite SciFi TV series.)

For no good reason, this disc sat around here for more than 6 weeks last fall and at least 10 days this time. We didn’t get our money’s worth of discs from Netflix during that time, but we watch Roku daily, so we’re happy with the cost.

A Knight’s Tale (2001) – IMDb

  132 min  -  Action | Romance   -  Available on demand

Users: 6.6/10 (48,290 votes) 614 reviews | Critics: 148 reviews

After his master dies, a peasant squire, fueled by his desire for food and glory, creates a new identity for himself as a knight.

Director:

Brian Helgeland

Writer:

Brian Helgeland

Stars:

Heath Ledger, Mark Addy and Rufus Sewell

Release Date:

11 May 2001 (USA)

Watch Trailer »

A Knight’s Tale (2001) – IMDb

Note: There is something strange going on with the poster from this movie. I see it on IMDB; I see it in my blog editor; I don’t see it on my blog. Go to IMDB if you want to see it.

OMG. Holy cow. What an amazing movie. Somebody called it, “A cross-cultural martial arts epic.” Oh, yeah. Takes place in Finland and ancient China. Features some of the most-beautifully filmed martial arts fighting I’ve seen – and I’ve seen a lot of good stuff. Also, an interesting story, although it requires some patience and focus. I expect to watch this one again. Highly recommended to anyone with an interest in myth, fate, and beautifully choreographed fighting (not particularly violent). Wow.

Jade Warrior (2006) – IMDb

OMG^2. How can my mind be blown, yet again. Franklyn (2008) seems to be about religion/faith/fate, madness, loss, fate (again), father figures, imagination / madness (again). There are a few great lines I cannot quote here, and great ideas. Another thought-provoking and, yes, challenging movie; and interesting follow up to The Butterfly Effect. Makes me hate Inception’s popularity all the more.

If you stream Netflix, be aware this movie is only available “until” (through?) 1/22/2011. What are you waiting for?

BTW, the poster used by IMDB (shown here) is not the one used by Netflix, which I think is the better one. Moreover, I might quibble with the summaries on both IMDB and Netflix.